


Secrets Within Secrets

by shanachie



Series: Not Just Voices on the Phone [1]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Character Death, Derek doesn’t deal well with feelings, Pack Feels, mild emotional trauma (off screen), mild violence (nothing worse than the show)
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-01-30
Updated: 2014-01-30
Packaged: 2018-01-10 14:39:52
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 10,000
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1160882
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/shanachie/pseuds/shanachie
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Laura Hale disappeared five months ago and her pack hasn’t given up on her, but meanwhile life has gone on. There’s a new tech and other cases, but the pack hasn’t given up.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Secrets Within Secrets

**Author's Note:**

  * For [WhoGeek](https://archiveofourown.org/users/WhoGeek/gifts).



> This is a birthday present for my lovely whogeek. It is HELLA late, but I know she didn’t mind waiting because she got a longer story (and a little bonus which will be posted after this). Hope y’all enjoy! Also this is apparently what happens when I get “snowed” in; I write almost 4000 words in two days and finish two stories.
> 
> CRIMINAL MINDS AU

Stiles spun around in his chair, tossing a tennis ball into the air as he waited for his phone to ring or his computer to beep. He _could_ take a closer look at the files for the case the team had been sent out on, but he’d learned the hard way that they didn’t like him hacking except under orders. So he’d sit impatiently and wait for ‘orders’.

A shrill ringing caused a flailing motion that almost up-ended his chair and he just caught himself before landing on his ass on the floor. More than one incident where he’d ended up ungainly sprawled on the floor in front of his fellow tech, Isaac Lahey, had taught him to catch himself. He grabbed a pen, clicking the speaker button on the phone as he chirped, “Temple of Ultimate Knowledge, Your Guide and Ready Assistant Stiles here.”

“Do you ever answer the phone like a normal person?” Lydia Martin asked.

“Absolutely, my bright and beautiful goddess, what can I do for you?” Stiles replied, spinning to face his main computer.

“Better not let Hale hear you talking that way,” Lydia responded.

“Engh, he knows I’m not serious when I tease you,” Stiles said, logging into the system. “What’s going on? What do you need?”

“Erica uploaded everything we had here to the server. Could you see if you can find a connection between the victims? A common lunch place? A coffee shop? Anything? So far we’re not finding anything here in person.”

“Absolutely.”

“And you’ll call Hale when you find it.” Lydia paused for a minute. “And how are you doing on the other thing?”

Stiles glanced at his personal computer where he kept a constant search running. “Nothing. Or well nothing new. I widened the parameters on location and narrowed the description, but I haven’t gotten any hits yet.”

“Okay.” Her voice faded as she talked to someone on the other end before she was back for a minute. “You know we appreciate this.”

“I might not have known Laura, but I understand that you guys want to find her,” Stiles answered. He tapped the keyboard in front of him as an answer came up. “It looks like all of your victims had dogs. Try dog parks, vets, pet stores.”

“Thanks, Stilinski.” A beep signaled her disconnection and Stiles leaned back in his chair as he considered the other computer.

 

 

 

Stiles was tapping his pens to the beat of the song blaring out of the iPod docked next to his computer when his door cracked open. A hand running up the back of his head and into his hair was the first he noticed of the interloper. He jumped as the hand continued through his hair and around to his neck. “Isaac, we’ve talked about this,” he said as the other tech dropped into the chair next to him. “Tell me you’re there before touching.”

Isaac ducked his head. “Sorry. I didn’t mean to upset you. I’ll go.”

“No, man. It’s fine. You didn’t upset me.” Stiles reached over and ruffled Isaac’s curls, having learned that it reassured and settled the other tech. “You just startled me.”

Isaac nodded towards Stiles’s computers. “What are you doing?”

“Just changing the parameters again on the search for Laura,” Stiles said. “It doesn’t seem to be doing much, but any little thing that might help.”

“So you think she’s still alive?” Isaac asked.

Stiles shrugged as he tweaked the last parameter of the search before turning to face Isaac head on. “I don’t know,” he admitted. “But I’m not going to stop looking.” He stared at the computer as the search began running. “I wouldn’t want anyone to give up on me.”

Isaac grinned in response as he offered Stiles a Twizzler. “The team would look for you.”

“How do you know?”

“Because.” Isaac paused as if considering his words. “Just because.”

“All righty if you say so, Zac.” Stiles rubbed his head again. “Don’t you have work of your own to do?”

 

 

“That’s the last case we take,” Derek growled as the team entered the bullpen. The other four members of his team quickly discovered they had other places to be as their team leader faced Derek and his temper head on.

“My office, Hale,” Deaton told him.

Derek crossed his arms as Deaton entered the office behind him. “I mean it, Deaton. We’re not doing this anymore.”

“I wasn’t aware you actually had a choice.”

Derek growled in response. “I might not have a choice, but you do. And you can take our team off rotation until we’ve had a chance to investigate any piece of evidence dealing with Laura’s disappearance.”

“And if I don’t think it’s good for the team or the pack?” Deaton asked, his voice still mild despite the tone Derek was taking with him.

“You have the right to overrule me when it comes to the team, but I am still Alpha of the Hale pack,” Derek replied. “And the _pack_ will request leave if that’s what it takes to allow us to look for Laura. We’ll do it unofficially if we have to.”

“I don’t think that will be necessary,” Deaton replied. “It would benefit both the team and the _pack_ to do something productive to search for Laura. I’ll speak to the section chief and see about getting any of the cases he was intending to assign your team reassigned. You won’t get more than a week though.”

Derek nodded, it was more than he’d expected. “Fine. We’ll start tomorrow. Once the team’s had a night to regroup and rest.”

“I’d suggest you speak to Stiles when you have a moment. He might have some information for you,” Deaton said as he prepared to leave. “You might be surprised.”

“Why would our conscripted tech have any information for me?” Derek demanded.

“He’s been talking to Isaac,” Deaton said mildly before picking up a file in clear dismissal.

 

 

 

Derek took a few minutes to check in with his pack, making sure that each of them understood they were to go home and rest; that they would be looking for Laura starting tomorrow. He sent Erica home immediately to her husband and daughter, knowing that she would need time with them before they started the search. The others he touched base with, checking to be sure they’d finished up their reports or were finishing them up. While he talked, they exchanged small touches; things that would be unnoticeable by anyone else but that strengthened the pack bonds.

Once he’d checked with each of the pack members that had been on the case with him and made sure that they’d leave within the next half-hour, he headed in the direction of the tech rooms and his youngest pack member.

“I hear you’ve been talking to Stilinski,” Derek commented from the doorway to Isaac’s small room.

Isaac turned, cowering away from his Alpha. “Was I not supposed to?”

Derek winced, realizing he’d inadvertently scared his young beta. He hummed, trying to sooth the young wolf. “Isaac, I’m not upset. It’s fine.” Entering the room, he closed the door, inviting his beta to come towards him. Isaac scooted his chair over and buried his face in Derek’s stomach, whining as the Alpha held him. “It’s okay. I’m not mad,” Derek soothed. “I just wanted to know what he knew.”

Derek ruffled Isaac’s hair, comforting him as he waited for the young wolf to formulate his words. After a minute the curly haired beta tipped his head back and answered, “He knows Laura’s missing. He’s been looking for her whenever he gets a minute. He says it’s because he’d want someone to look for him. He doesn’t know about us, about the pack. But, Derek. He feels _right_. He feels _safe_. And he doesn’t mind when I scent him. Or scent mark him.”

“Isaac, Stiles might not understand what you’re doing,” Derek cautioned.

Isaac pouted. “But he knows I come in to visit him when you’re all gone.”

“And has he ever seen you with any of the pack?” Derek questioned. “And he might think your interest in Laura is nothing more than interest in what’s going on with the computers. Don’t take it the wrong way, Iz. I just don’t want you to get your hopes up.”

“So we can’t keep him?” Isaac asked.

“Not yet,” Derek said. “But we’ll see how things work out.”

 

 

 

 

 

“Hey,” Derek said quietly, trying not to startle the engrossed tech. When Stiles didn’t respond to his quiet greeting, he raised his voice, “Hey.” At the continued lack of response, he snapped, “Stilinski!”

“Woo—ahh—ha,” Stiles yelped. He flailed his arms, pinwheeling them as he attempted to keep his balance and not fall out of his chair. “Don’t _do_ that!” he demanded.

“You didn’t answer when I called you,” Derek pointed out. “What are you doing?”

“Ah. I am…” Stiles looked at his computers as if they would give him the answers. “I am doing something I probably shouldn’t be doing.”

Derek raised an eyebrow at that answer. “Well, you don’t have to hack into the FBI anymore.”

Stiles pointed a finger at him. “It is not nice to keep reminding me of that.”

Derek smirked. “I only remind you once or twice a month.”

“It’s once or twice a month too often,” Stiles grumbled. “And no, I’m not. I… might be searching for my replacement.”

“What?!” Derek practically shouted.

Stiles waved a hand. “That came out wrong. Not my replacement. But I don’t want to say the person I replaced.” He sighed. “Don’t get mad at me.”

“Why would I get mad at you, Stiles?”

“I’ve been looking for Laura.”

For a minute Derek paused, unsure how to respond to what Stiles clearly thought was a bombshell. “I know. Deaton hinted at it and Isaac confirmed it.”

“Don’t blame Isaac. He didn’t do anything wrong,” Stiles almost begged.

“I know he didn’t. And I’m not upset with him. I’ve already reassured him.” An almost smile crossed his face. “Do I need to reassure you, too?”

“N-n-no, I’m g-g-good,” Stiles stuttered.

Derek cocked his head at that, the tick in his heartbeat giving Stiles away. Stiles wanted something, but he wasn’t willing to admit it here, even in the privacy of his own office. Despite the teasing over the phone, it was obvious Stiles wasn’t ready to take it further in person. “Can you have everything you have on the search, every shred no matter how vague ready tomorrow?”

“Yeah. Yes. Absolutely. Of course. Do you want it…” Stiles spun around to face his computers. “I can have it for you in a couple of minutes if you just want…”

“Stiles,” Derek’s voice paused his rambling. “Tomorrow is soon enough. The team is going to meet at ten am and we’re going to go over everything and start looking full time for Laura. So if you just have everything ready then.”

“I can absolutely do that.”

 

 

 

 

Derek looked over his team, his pack, the next morning as they entered the conference room. Normally he wasn’t the first one in, but he’d made a point of getting in early so he could be there as they entered. As each one entered, he gave them a moment of his time, brushing up against them and checking to be sure they had gotten rest the night before.

“So what’s going on, Derek?” Scott asked as they settled into their seats. “And where’s Deaton?”

“I’m right here, Scott,” Deaton said as he entered with Stiles behind him.

“Do we have a new case already?” Allison asked.

Deaton took his seat. “Not a new case. Derek spoke with me after we returned yesterday and pointed out that he still holds some sway over decisions with this team.”

“We’re going to look for Laura,” Lydia broke in.

“We are,” Derek confirmed. “We’re not going to leave her out there any longer. If we can find her, whether she’s alive or not, we’re going to.”

“Stiles?” Deaton asked.

“Oh yeah. That’s my cue. Right.” Stiles bobbled his tablet for a minute before flicking a picture onto the big screen. Derek winced as he recognized a candid shot of Laura rather than her FBI security shot. “Laura Hale. Age thirty-five. Oldest of three Hale siblings, younger brother Derek and sister Cora.” He glanced over at Derek. “You have another sister?”

Derek sighed. “Focus, Stiles.” When Stiles continued to stare at him, he answered, “Yes. She works for State.” Before Stiles could ask, he added, “And she’s younger than me.”

“Okay. So. Laura Hale. Worked in my position as tech extraordinaire until her disappearance five months ago.” Another picture appeared on the main screen. “Laura disappeared from her home, which she shared with her brother, five months ago.” He paused. “Really, Derek?”

“Are you going to keep commenting? Or give us the information?” Derek demanded.

“Sorry. I just. You lived with your sister?” he questioned.

“It’s a large house,” Derek commented. “There was no reason _not_ to live with my sister.”

“Stiles, could you please attempt to keep the commentary to the minimum?” Deaton broke in.

“Okay. Anyway. The only night that baby brother _wasn’t_ home… Someone broke into the Hale house and absconded with the eldest Hale. Which is Laura.” Stiles flicked up a report. “Techs got nada. No evidence, no sign of a break-in. Which begs the question. Did Laura Hale leave the house on her own?” Before any of the group could respond to his comment, he said, “I don’t think she did so don’t get all protective or attack me.”

“Stiles,” Derek growled.

“Look I’ve been searching for Laura Hale ever since I knew there _was_ a Laura Hale,” Stiles said. “And there’s _no_ reason for Laura to leave on her own. She had a good job, family, friends. There was absolutely _no_ reason to walk away. And yet she disappeared without a trace.”

“So how are we supposed to find her?” Lydia asked.

“I am… ninety… seven. No ninety-eight percent positive that she’s still in the DC Virginia area,” Stiles replied. “Maybe on the outside chance Maryland. And I know this because…” A flick of his fingers made data appear on the big screen. “Because I searched every single camera I could access at every transportation hub Laura could have possibly used within a week of her disappearance and she did not appear at any of them.”

Derek locked eyes with Stiles as he tried to figure out what the boy was saying. “So you know Laura didn’t just walk away is what you’re saying?” Deaton questioned.

“Yeah.” Stiles sighed. “Unfortunately I also can’t find any trace of whoever got her out of the house.” He flicked through the pictures on his tablet. “You couldn’t have a camera by your house, Hale? A security system that had a login?”

“It didn’t seem necessary until it was too late,” Derek said. “Can we focus on my missing sister?”

“Yeah. Sorry. Okay. I’ve transferred everything I could find to your tablets. And, yes, hardcopy for you my lovely luddite, Doctor Martin.” Stiles handed the file to Lydia.

“You had better not be insulting me, Stiles,” Lydia told him as she accepted the file.

“I would never,” Stiles told her.

 

 

 

 

Derek turned his cell phone over in his hand before flicking his thumb across the screen and thumbing through his contacts. He didn’t _need_ to call Stiles, there was no actual reason for him to call the tech, but he found his finger drifting towards the tech’s name. After a moment, he gave in and ran his thumb over the connect sign, trying to figure out a reason as the call rang through.

“Hey, hot stuff,” Stiles answered the phone.

“One of these days it isn’t going to be me on the other end,” Derek told him.

“There’s this beautiful invention called ‘caller ID’, it tells me who’s on the other end of the line. As long as you’re using your own phone.”

“Stiles,” Derek growled.

“It’s not fair of you to growl at me when you’re not here so I can see the faces you’re making,” Stiles complained.

“I… don’t even know what to say to that.”

Stiles laughed nervously. “Then um. Don’t say anything. Just um forget I even said it. Forget I said anything at all. Let’s try this again. Um, Agent Hale, sir. What can I do for you? I don’t have anything new or I would have called you.”

“Since when do you call me Agent Hale?”

“All right, _Eyebrows_ , I don’t have anymore information. So why are you calling?”

“I wanted. I wanted to.” Derek took a deep breath.

“Use your words, Derek,” Stiles coaxed. “Despite what people think I am not a mind reader.”

Derek smacked his forehead with his palm. “Stiles.”

“Yes, Derek?”

“Why do you make everything more difficult?”

“My dad says it’s a failing he’s tried to cure me of and nothing has done it,” Stiles replied primly.

Derek snorted at that. “I can believe it. As is your ability to distract.”

“There is that. So did you have an actual reason for calling or did you just want me to drive you insane?”

Derek coughed, not sure he actually wanted to answer the second half of that question. “I did have a reason.”

“All right. Spit it out, hot stuff.” It was Stiles’s turn to cough as he realized what he said. “Or don’t. Um. You know what I mean.”

“I prefer to swallow,” Derek muttered.

“What?!”

“Nothing,” Derek attempted to cover. “I um called to tell you thank you.”

“For what? I’m just doing my job,” Stiles answered.

“No, you went above and beyond. You didn’t need to keep looking for Laura without permission. And you’re the reason we even have a starting point right now.”

“You don’t have much of a starting point,” Stiles pointed out.

“We know she’s still _here_ ,” Derek said. “We know she’s still in the area.” He took a deep breath. “And if we can find some trace of where she went, maybe one of us can find some scent, some trace of her to track.”

“Why would that help?” Stiles asked, his chair creaking audibly over the phone as he leaned back in it.

“Everything isn’t as black and white as it seems,” Derek replied before hanging up.

 

 

 

Isaac looked up as Derek entered the main room. “How’s Stiles?”

Derek growled at his beta. “Were you listening to our conversation?”

Tilting his head to the side, Isaac bared his neck. “No, of course not. I just heard you say his name.”

Derek’s eyes flashed red at the sign of submission from the younger wolf. “You better not have been. And I want you to stay out of his room when at the BAU.”

“Why? He’s a tech like me. What’s the big deal if I go into his office?” Isaac asked curiously.

“Because every time you go near him, you scent him. And I’m tired of smelling you on him.”

“It’s hard not to scent him. He treats me like, like I’m his… like I’m his pup.” Isaac made an almost grasping motion. “Can’t I tell him? Or you? He might take it better coming from you.”

“I told Stiles we might be able to find Laura if we could get a scent of her. You know he’s not going to leave that alone.”

“He’s going to hack,” Isaac warned.

“Well hopefully he won’t get caught,” Derek replied.

 

 

 

 

Stiles stared at the phone for a minute after Derek hung up. “Are you kidding me? You know. You know you can’t just leave me with a lead like that and not expect me to do something with it.” He leaned back in his chair, locking his hands together and cracking his knuckles. “So. Here? Or home?” He considered his choices for a few moments. “Here,” he decided after careful consideration. He would be more comfortable at home, but he’d have easier access to the files and be better able to cover his tracks if he stayed at the BAU.

He spun around, opening a drawer that was behind him normally and pulled out a bag of Twizzlers. Normally he’d chew on his pens or pencils while he was working, but serious hacking called for serious snacks. He stuck one of the red gummies in his mouth and got to work.

He started with the surface files, but there wasn’t any information there that he didn’t already know. Locations, home addresses, case files, notes on promotions, commendations, reprimands, all of those things he already knew. Or most of them anyway. There was a moment when he noted that Isaac had the same address as Derek and that (if his geography wasn’t completely off), no one seemed to live far from anyone else, but it was just a momentary note. He spent a few minutes scrolling through the information from before he’d joined the team, looking at the case where he’d been arrested and practically dragooned into joining.

But none of that told him why Derek thought he could find Laura by scent. So he started digging deeper. As he poked around in the secondary levels of Derek’s file (refusing to admit why it was _Derek’s_ file he was picking to poke around in), he noticed the triskelion watermarked at the bottom of the page. If he hadn’t been searching for something, he never would have noticed it.

“Well, here goes nothing,” Stiles muttered when he moused over it and the arrow lit up. “It seriously cannot be that easy,” he commented as a new file unfolded before him. Then again, he hadn’t gone into the files the easy way, but had opened them up using Deaton’s ID number. So maybe that was the difference.

He whistled as the new file opened up on his screen and he was treated to the sight of a file he hadn’t seen before. “Medical information, background.” He whistled again. “Lydia is a _banshee_?!” he exclaimed in a quiet voice. “That explains sooo much.” He read a bit farther. “Fucking werewolves!” Slapping a hand down on his desk. “Scent her out, my ass.” As he realized what he’d said, he yelped, “Oh my god. _Scent_!” He banged his head down on the desk. “I can’t believe. Oh god. All the things. They must know _everything_.”

He began digging farther into the files, looking for something, _anything_ , that could help locate Derek’s sister.

“And why isn’t Laura the alpha?” he muttered as he kept searching.

 

 

 

 

Derek groaned as the pounding on his front door didn’t subside, but got more insistent. Walking past Isaac, he kicked the chair the beta was lounging in, pretending to be asleep. “Why aren’t you answering the door?” he demanded as he walked past.

“Because he’s muttering about you,” Isaac replied without opening his eyes. “And I’m not getting between the two of you when he’s ranting.”

Derek cocked his head to the side. He could hear Stiles on the other side of the door, muttering under his breath, and the elevated beat of his heart. He didn’t try to make out what Stiles was muttering, instead throwing up the door. “Is there something I can help you with, Stilinski?” he drawled.

“Fucking werewolves,” Stiles replied, pushing past Derek to get into the house. For a minute he paced around the living room before finally bursting out, “Why didn’t you tell me?!”

“Stiles,” Derek started.

“No. Absolutely not. You don’t get to talk yet.” Stiles stared at him for a long moment. “Did you not trust me? I mean I get that we didn’t meet under the best of circumstances but I thought we’d… I thought we’d moved past that. And oh my god, the things you must know!”

“Isaac, out.” Derek jerked his head at the door, shooing his beta from the room.

“But this is entertaining,” the beta protested.

“Isaac,” Derek growled.

“Right, going.” The curly haired tech popped to his feet and scurried from the room.

Stiles groaned. “Why didn’t I see it?” He tugged on his hair. “And you. You know.” He groaned again. “You probably know _everything_.”

Derek ducked his head. “We try not to smell people without their permission. I mean some things we can’t help knowing. But we try not to actively smell people. Or at least not talk about it.” He lifted his head, trying to meet Stiles’s eyes. “But you might want to know, Isaac’s been trying to mark you.”

“Mark me?” Stiles looked confused. “For what? And why?”

Derek rubbed the back of his neck. “He um he wants to.” He winced. “He wasn’t trying to _mark_ you like for himself. He’s trying to scent mark you. For the pack.”

“I don’t understand,” Stiles said quietly.

“Sit down?” Derek asked, indicating the chairs. “And.” He turned towards the door Isaac had disappeared through. “Isaac, stop listening and come in here.”

Isaac slunk back into the living room, perching on the couch farthest away from the other two. “Sorry, Derek,” he said.

“It’s fine.” Derek waved him off. “Do you want to explain to Stiles what you’re doing?”

Isaac shook his head, brushing his curls out of his face. “No.” He hunkered down against the couch, as if to hide from them.

Derek sighed, clearly not having the patience to deal with him. “You started this.”

Isaac whined in response and Stiles moved between the two werewolves, clearly intending to protect the younger wolf. “How about _you_ explain it then?” Stiles demanded.

Derek smiled at Stiles’s actions. “That’s why he’s doing it. Isaac saw, possibly sensed what you are. And that’s why he was trying to scent mark you.”

“I’m just a tech. One who was smart enough to lay tracks so the FBI would catch me when I was ready to get out of the game,” Stiles protested.

“That’s not all you are,” Derek told him. He reached out, giving Stiles plenty of time to draw back. When the other boy didn’t, Derek brushed his hand down Stiles’s neck. “You’re a Guardian.”

Stiles looked at Derek suspiciously. “Did you just do that marking thing? Cause that’s what Isaac does when he comes into my office.”

Isaac’s head came up from where he’d buried it against a pillow. “So does this mean we get to keep him?” he asked.

“Fucking werewolves!” Stiles repeated, but with a thread of affection this time. “I am not a stray!”

Derek rolled his eyes at the two of them. “Yes, I was marking you. Isaac, we can only keep him if he wants to be kept. And, Stiles, you may not think you’re a stray, but we aren’t a family pack. We’re a found pack. Most of our pack is strays or people we’ve found. Only Laura, Cora, and I are actually related.”

“It’s not such a bad thing,” Isaac spoke up. “You have a family. And somewhere to belong. Always.”

“So.” Stiles shifted awkwardly. “Do I. Have to do anything special to agree to this? Do I have to like dance naked in the moonlight or something?” He grimaced. “Do I actually have to become a werewolf? Cause I kinda like being human. Not that there’s anything wrong with being a werewolf, cause the claws and grrr and you guys are badass. And oh my god, the files. That explained _so_ much!”

“Stiles, breathe,” Derek broke in. When the tech took a breath, he continued, “No, you don’t _have_ to accept the bite, but it’s always an option for you. You might want to decide under what circumstances you will accept it. And no, there aren’t any special rituals. Although everyone in the pack will make a point to mark you in the next few days.”

“But how will they know?” Stiles asked.

Isaac held up his phone, waving it with a grin. “I texted them. Gotta love modern technology.”

Derek rolled his eyes. “You couldn’t wait?”

“We get to keep Stiles,” Isaac replied. “You said we couldn’t keep him, but now we get to keep him.”

“Still not a stray,” Stiles said.

Whatever Derek would have said was interrupted as Erica burst into the house. She looked at the tableau for a moment, then blurted out, “I think I got Laura’s scent.”

“Erica,” Derek growled.

“What?” she demanded. “Isaac already told me he knows.”

Stiles snorted at Derek’s expression. “Do your betas do this often?”

“You aren’t helping,” Derek told him. “Isaac, since you like texting the pack so much… text them and let them know Erica thinks she found Laura’s scent. We’re going out hunting.”

“And what am I going to do?” Stiles asked.

“Well.” Derek looked at him. “Everyone’s going to want to see you when they get here. So you can stay put.”

“And what else do you want us to do?” Erica asked.

“Try to stay out of trouble. What were you even doing out looking for Laura?” Derek demanded.

“Leigh wouldn’t sleep. Boyd and I were taking her for a walk,” Erica answered. She brushed up against Stiles as she went to take a seat next to Isaac, wrinkling her nose as she smelled him. “Boyd took her home when I was sure I had the scent.”

“Should I call Deaton?” Isaac asked, as he made space for his pack sister to snuggle next to him on the couch.

“No, let’s keep this within the pack for now,” Derek responded.

“Wait, Deaton isn’t pack?” Stiles asked in confusion.

“No,” Derek answered shortly.

 

 

 

 

Stiles was really getting tired of each of the wolves wrinkling their noses as they rubbed their faces against his. The only ones who hadn’t were Lydia and Allison and he knew from his reading that they weren’t actually werewolves. Apparently packs were strengthened when they had more than just wolves in them and that was what had led to Laura and Derek to agreeing to the inclusion of the banshee and the hunter according to Erica.

“You know I took a shower this morning,” Stiles complained after Scott wrinkled his nose.

“It’s not your lack of hygiene that’s a problem,” Cora, Derek’s sister, commented from where she was perched on top of the coffee table. “It’s the other… smells.”

“Isn’t there some sort of rule or something that says you ignore those things?” Stiles asked. “There’s something called privacy.”

“Not when you’re an annoying little sister,” Derek replied. “Erica, where were you and Boyd?”

A map was quickly pulled out and the wolves bent over it, Erica pointing out where they were walking. Stiles was amazed as their discussion quickly turned to wind direction and timing and how long the scent could linger. Even Allison contributed to the conversation, which didn’t surprise him nearly as much once Scott explained her family were hunters. “Werewolf hunters,” Cora said.

“And that doesn’t cause a problem?” Stiles questioned.

“I don’t talk to my family much,” Allison admitted.

“I told you we were a found pack,” Derek told him. He folded the map up. “Everyone know where we’re going?”

Stiles raised a hand, waving a finger at him. “Um, I don’t.”

“Good because you’re staying here with Leigh and Boyd,” Derek said, not looking up from where he was checking his sidearm.

“How come she gets to go if Boyd and I are staying here?” Stiles demanded.

“Boyd,” Derek said and the dark skinned wolf immediately scooped up his sleeping daughter and left the room. At a look from the alpha, the rest of the pack also quickly left the room. “You’re staying here because you aren’t field trained. And I don’t need to worry about you while I’m looking for Laura. If you’re here, I know you’re safe.” With that speech finished, he left the room.

Stiles threw his hands up into the air. “Cause _that_ wasn’t confusing.”

“It’s a Hale thing,” said a voice from behind him.

“Eeeeee!” Stiles yelped, the shock causing him to jump in the air. He flailed around and only Boyd’s quick movements and firm grip on his hoodie prevented him from falling on his ass. “Don’t. Do. That,” Stiles complained. “I can’t believe. Do all werewolves get stealth training?”

“Cop,” Boyd pointed out.

“Yeah and what’s up with that?” Stiles asked, shrugging out of Boyd’s grip. “Why aren’t you on the FBI team with all the others?”

Boyd shrugged in response, sitting down on the couch, and picking up a book.

“So wanna tell me about the pack?” Stiles questioned as he dropped into a seat across from Boyd. “I mean more about the pack outside of the FBI? Your daughter is adorable. I mean I always thought that, I always told Erica that, but with you and her as parents, how could she not be?”

Boyd just stared at him in response.

“Really?” Stiles asked.

 

 

 

 

Outside the house, Derek quickly divided the group up into search parties, making sure there was a wolf with each group and that Allison and Scott weren’t in the same group. Derek himself was paired with Cora and they took the portion of the grid closest to where Erica caught the trace of Laura’s scent.

“So when are you going to tell Stiles the rest of it?” Cora asked when they had reached their search section.

“Not now, Cora,” Derek responded.

“So you’re just going to keep denying what you want?” she questioned. “Geez, Derek, we could _all_ smell you. We could all smell _both_ of you.”

“I have to think of what’s good for the pack,” Derek argued. “Especially with Laura gone.”

“Oh I’m sorry and since when is having a happy alpha not good for the pack?” Cora grabbed her brother’s arm. “Derek. The pack _likes_ Stiles. We don’t object to him either as a pack mate or as alpha’s mate.”

“He’s a Guardian,” Derek said.

“And that should make a difference? So you’ll have lots of make-up sex.”

“Cora!”

“Oh, please, like we aren’t already drowning in the lust scent you two put out anytime you’re around in each. Do something about it and put us all out of our misery. Even Lydia and Allison are starting to notice.”

Derek felt his face redden at Cora’s blunt words. “Can we just focus on finding Laura? Please?”

 

 

 

 

 

It was nearing daybreak when the pack began straggling back to the house. They hadn’t had any luck actually locating Laura, but the wolves had found some more traces, making them better able to narrow down the location she might be. Derek had ordered them all back to the house to rest and eat.

Stiles struggled to sit up on the couch he was laying on and only succeeded in tangling himself more in the blankets. Lydia rolled her eyes at his uncoordinated movements before following Erica up the stairs. “Did you find anything?” Stiles asked sleepily as the boys flopped down on various pieces of furniture. He moved his feet as Isaac curled up on the couch by them.

There were various answers in the negative as they stretched tired muscles.

“You know you could have used a bed,” Derek commented.

“Not all of us have wolfy noses. I didn’t know which one I was allowed to use,” Stiles responded.

Isaac lifted his head from where he was resting it on Stiles’s legs. “It wouldn’t have bothered me if you’d slept in my bed.” When he realized what it sounded like, he was quick to add, “Not that I expect I’d be in it. I’m just saying. The scent wouldn’t bother me.”

Allison shook her head, offering Isaac a way out. “We got it, Isaac. Well, maybe not Stiles, but the rest of us.” She turned to Stiles. “Isaac is comforted by the scent of his packmates. So he’d feel better if he could smell you while he was sleeping.”

“I’m not sure if that’s disturbing or adorable,” Stiles said. He patted Isaac on the head, smoothing his curls when the beta looked distressed. “But since it’s you, it’s adorable.”

“I think it’s time for everybody to go to bed,” Derek broke in. “Alone. Or with your mates.” When Cora opened her mouth to say something in response to that, he added, “I’ll show Stiles to a guest room he can use.”

“I’m fine here on the couch. I mean I’ve definitely slept worse places,” Stiles protested.

Derek shook his head. “We’ve got the space, there’s no reason you can’t sleep in a bed.”

There wasn’t much argument from the searchers who immediately hauled themselves to their feet and began heading for what Stiles assumed was bed. “Honestly, Derek, I can sleep…” He squawked as Derek hauled him to his feet. “What are you doing?” Derek ignored his question as he pulled the tech towards the stairs. “No seriously, Derek, what are you doing?” Stiles asked, attempting to dig his feet in against Derek’s grip.

“I told you. We have plenty of beds,” Derek said, opening a door. “So you can sleep in here.”

“What Allison said about Isaac liking his packmates’ scent?” Stiles said. “Does that hold true for anyone else in the pack?”

“Everyone in the pack likes to smell their packmates to a certain extent,” Derek replied. “So you might want to get used to it.” He turned to go. “Oh. And they’ll probably want to scent mark you again tomorrow. You’ve been smelling like potential pack and now you smell like _pack_. It’s very new smelling and they’re just going to want to make sure.”

“They want to what?” Stiles asked.

Derek stroked a hand across his face. “Good night, Stiles.”

“Cause that wasn’t confusing,” Stiles said, banging his head against the door.

Isaac poked his head out of a room two doors down. “You ‘kay, Stiles?” he asked.

“Yeah, I’m fine, Zac,” Stiles answered. “Just…” He waved a hand. “Derek.”

Isaac grinned. “If you’re okay then.” He ducked his head, then looked up at Stiles through his eyelashes. “You gonna be okay sleeping by yourself?”

“What?” Stiles looked confused for a minute. “Yes. Isaac. Good night.” Isaac grinned again before ducking back into his room. “I’m surrounded by handsy wolves.”

“We can hear you,” half the wolves called back.

Stiles banged his head against the door again before heading into the room and shutting the door. He’d deal with the rest of this in the morning.

 

 

Stiles stumbled down the stairs later that day, rubbing his eyes as he tried to wake up. As soon as his feet hit the bottom step, a body attached itself to his back. “Ack!” Stiles responded as he pinwheeled his arms trying to keep his balance.

“Cora, don’t break your new packmate,” Derek ordered from where he, Allison, and Boyd were making a meal. Erica looked up from where she was feeding Leigh at the table.

“Aw, but he’s someone new to play with,” Cora protested.

“Cor…” Derek started, but Stiles tumbled her to the ground, easily holding her, although it was obvious she could break away if she wanted.

“Is there protocol for the way wolves deal with humans?” he asked Derek.

“Wolves aren’t allowed to draw blood unless in training or the humans are armed,” Derek replied. “Cora was just playing.”

“Good to know,” Stiles said, then paused before saying, “I think.” Stepping over Cora, who had stayed prone on the floor when Derek growled at her, he dropped into the seat next to Leigh. “Hi, sweetie.” Looking over her head at Erica, he asked, “Is it okay if I pick her up?”

Erica laughed as Leigh raised her hands to Stiles, demanding, “Up!”, “I really don’t think it’s a problem.”

Stiles settled the little girl on his lap, jerking in surprise as a wet tongue swiped across his cheek. “What?” he blurted.

Erica reached out to wipe some of the spittle off his face. “Apparently she decided you needed her scent, too. Sorry. She hasn’t quite gotten the idea of scent marking down yet.”

“Okay,” Stiles said. “I can.” He looked at Leigh. “No licking, okay?” Making a face at her, he tickled her until she giggled. “That’s gross.”

“Maybe not if it’s someone else doing it, huh, Stiles?” Cora asked, wrapping her arms around him from behind and rubbing her cheek against his.

“What? No. No licking,” Stiles protested.

“You sure about that?” Cora asked.

“What is with you?” Stiles tried to twist around to see her.

“Cora,” Derek warned.

Pouting, Cora dropped into a seat and reached for a plate as food was brought to the table. “Where’s Scott and Isaac?” Stiles asked. “And Lydia?”

“Still sleeping,” Allison said. “Although I’m sure they’ll be up in a few minutes. The boys at least will smell the food.”

Erica’s head cocked to one side and then she nodded. “Boys are awake. And one of them got Lydia up. She’s…” Erica winced. “Well, one of these days Scott will learn not to bug Lydia before her first cup of coffee.”

Stiles perked up at that. “You have coffee?”

Boyd set the pot down in front of him in answer, handing over a cup next. Stiles grinned up at him as he poured a cup, setting the pot back down as the remaining pack members entered the kitchen.

“Give me the coffee and no one gets hurt,” Lydia announced as she took an open seat.

Stiles lifted his cup up, holding it out to her. When he’d first joined the BAU (when he’d been terrified of Derek and most of the rest of the team), he’d had a crush on Lydia Martin, but now that he’d gotten to know her and they’d spent more time together, he was happy just being friends with her. And sometimes he thought she was the only one who understood half the things he could do on the computer. He didn’t understand half of what she sprouted when she really got going, but at least he could mostly keep up with her. “Take mine,” he offered now. “I didn’t drink any yet.”

“Bless you, Stiles,” Lydia said, accepting the cup from him. “See that’s the proper way to treat a lady in the morning.”

“Who says you’re a lady?” Scott asked as he pressed a kiss to the side of Allison’s head in greeting.

“So help me, Scott McCall, I will scream,” Lydia told him.

“Please don’t,” most of the wolves said.

“So screaming is… bad?” Stiles asked.

“Her screams are,” Derek explained as he sat down at the table. “You looked at all our files?” At Stiles’s nod, he continued, “Banshees’ screams herald death. Lydia’s screams also alert the pack to danger. And we,” he indicated the wolves, “can hear her almost anywhere.”

“If we’re within range,” Scott said. “And the range is pretty far.”

“Okay.” Derek could almost see Stiles filing the information away. “So what’s the plan for today? Or tonight rather?”

Derek nodded to the pack, who began to get up; clearing the table and putting things away. Lydia almost growled at Isaac as he tried to take her mug and he quickly withdrew his hand. The banshee scooped up her mug and swanned from the room with it in her hand. “We’ll search like we did last night. We started to get somewhere. Can you work from here?” he asked.

“Yeah, sure.” Stiles nodded. “I’ve got my laptop.”

“Okay, you and Boyd stay here then,” Derek said.

“Derek,” Stiles said as the alpha started to leave. “Can I ask you something?”

“Boyd won’t let anything happen to you,” Derek assured him.

“Um, yeah. Okay. That’s great. That wasn’t actually what I was going to ask you.”

Derek frowned. “Anything else can wait then, Stiles.”

“No. I don’t think this can. It’s about Laura.”

“What then?”

“Are you sure Laura’s still alive? I get that you don’t want to give up. That you don’t want to dash the pack’s hopes but are you sure?”

“How much of our files did you read?” Derek asked instead of answering.

“Um.” Stiles winced. “All of them?”

“So you know that Laura and I are twins? And co-alphas?” Derek questioned. When Stiles nodded, he said, “That’s pretty rare. And it gives us some pretty deep bonds, beyond even the pack bonds. I think. I think I would _know_ if Laura was dead. And I just have to hold onto that.”

Stiles opened his mouth to say something in response, but before he could, Derek walked out of the room. “We’re going to discuss this, Derek Hale,” he yelled after Derek. “Or well discuss something!”

A snort from the doorway drew his attention. “You know you don’t have to yell,” Boyd commented, entering the kitchen with Leigh perched on his arm. “We can hear you if you speak in a normal tone of voice.”

“But he might pay attention if I yell,” Stiles grumbled.

“They’re already gone,” Boyd pointed out. “I’m going to clean up. Did Derek want you to do something?”

“Yeah. Yeah. I need.” Stiles glanced around. “I’m going to keep. I told Derek I’d keep working from here.”

 

 

 

 

 

Derek took Lydia with him today, not wanting to listen to Cora bug him about what he was going to do with Stiles now that the young tech was a member of the pack. Telling her, “I don’t _plan_ to _do_ anything to Stiles,” hadn’t stopped her from offering comments or suggestions.

Lydia had just rolled her eyes and stalked off in the direction they were supposed to be searching. That had made Derek’s decision for him. At least she wouldn’t browbeat him about their newest pack member.

Or so he thought.

“You know you’re going to have to tell him something,” Lydia commented once they’d reached the new search section.

“I don’t want to discuss it, Lydia.”

“Well, your puppies aren’t going to keep quiet forever,” she replied. “So if you don’t want one of them to tell him, you’re going to have to talk to him. Stiles isn’t stupid.”

Derek made a face at her. “Don’t call the betas ‘puppies’,” Derek told her. “The last thing I need is Stiles picking up on that.”

“Please, we both know that one, they are puppies. Scott even shakes his leg if you scratch his ear just right. And two, Stiles already thinks of Isaac as a big puppy. Even before he figured it all out.”

“Lydia, remind me again why you’re in my pack?”

“Because I’m brilliant and I’m a banshee. And it was invite me to join your pack or kill me. And you, Derek Hale, are not a cold-blooded murderer.”

Derek just nodded, going back to sniffing at the air. Glancing down at her feet, he was pleased to note that although she wore heels like usual, she had on boots tonight, something she could move in. “Are you running? Or shall I carry you?”

“How fast are you going to go?”

“As fast as I can, I think I found her.”

“Should I call the others?” she asked.

“Not yet. Let’s make sure,” Derek replied. “Running or carrying?”

“You can move faster if you carry me,” Lydia decided.

 

 

 

 

 

Slowly Derek let Lydia slide down until her feet were touching the ground. “If Laura’s in there. And someone has her. I want you to scream, Lydia, no arguing, scream as loud as you can. Do you hear me?”

“It’s going to incapacitate you,” she protested.

“For a few seconds, a minute at the most. If it’s another wolf that took Laura, and I think it is, it’ll knock that wolf out for longer. You know the pack bonds protect me for the most part.”

“And it’ll bring the rest of the pack running,” she finished.

“As fast as they can.” He grinned and it was not a nice smile. “And it will be very fast.”

She nodded, taking a deep breath. “I can do it.”

“I know you can, Lydia.” He rested a hand against her cheek. “Ready?”

“It doesn’t look like a place where a kidnapper would hole up,” Lydia commented in a low voice as they began to creep around the town house.

“There’s a specific type?” Derek asked. “I thought after all this time you’d know there’s profiling and then there’s typing.”

“You have to admit, Derek, that this place looks not unlike mine,” Lydia pointed out. “And it’s more likely a kidnapper would choose…” she stopped as Derek held up a hand.

“She’s in there,” he breathed. “I can hear her.” He grinned. “And she’s not being at all cooperative.”

“She is your sister,” Lydia commented.

Derek’s eyes flashed red as he leaped up onto the porch, waiting until Lydia was behind him. “When I kick in the door, I want you to scream, Lydia. Scream as soon as I make my move.”

Lydia tipped her head back, inhaling, as Derek covered his ears, even though he knew it really didn’t help. Even as her scream reverberated through the neighborhood, he kicked in the door; splintering the jam and almost knocking the door off the hinges. As her scream faded, he roared, shifting into his beta form as he entered the house.

“Der-ek!” Laura’s voice came from the direction of what would be the dining room and he headed towards her, only to pull up short as the _last_ person he ever expected walked into his line of sight.

“Peter,” he growled.

“Well, hello, dear nephew. I must admit, it took you longer than I expected to find us,” Peter drawled. “What’s wrong? Not as powerful without your dear twin?”

“Lydia, go get Laura,” Derek ordered. “Go now.”

Peter leaped in front of her as she started towards the other room. “Uh, uh, uh, pretty little one. You stay right here.” He looked her over. “Well, my nephew has good taste at least.” Glancing back at Derek, he asked, “Your mate?”

“My banshee,” Derek replied as Lydia opened her mouth again and screamed.

As Peter crumpled to the ground, his face a rictus of pain, Lydia ran past him into the room he had been protecting.

Derek kept his eyes on Peter as the man struggled to his feet. “Why?” he asked. “We thought you were dead. If you’d come to us. We would have taken you in.”

“I deserved it,” Peter told him. “Not you. Not you two. The fire took everything. Took my family. My sister and my wife. And I should have been the alpha. It shouldn’t have gone to you!”

Derek shook his head. “It was always. The power would have gone to us whenever Mom decided. She would have passed it on even if she hadn’t died. That was always…” He leaped backwards as Peter lunged at him.

“It should have been _mine_!” Peter screamed.

Derek lashed out, his claws raking across Peter’s chest and his uncle fell backwards. Peter snarled in response, his own claws flexing as he tried ineffectually to grab at Derek. The alpha followed up his first blow, striking at the beta and slamming him into the floor. The older man stood up, intending to lunge at Derek again, and Laura flew out of the other room.

Snarling, she didn’t even give Derek a chance to react before she was on Peter, her own claws swiping across the beta’s throat. Once. Twice. And then a third time before she collapsed on the floor.

Shifting back to human, Derek didn’t spare his uncle’s body a glance as he moved to Laura’s side. Dropping to his knees beside her, he wrapped his arms around her, murmuring, “Laura.”

She collapsed against him, not crying, but clearly taking comfort in his arms around her. “I knew you’d find me, my Shadow. I knew you’d come for me.”

Derek just held her tighter.

 

 

 

 

 

When the rest of the pack finally burst through the ruined door it was to find Derek wrapped around Laura just a few feet from the body. The normally stoic alpha was whining as he buried his face in his sister’s hair and Lydia stood guard over them both with her pistol aimed at the body. She was clearly not taking any chances on Peter getting back up despite the ruin that had been his throat.

Erica almost gagged at the sight, quickly recovering, and moving towards her alphas. “What?” Scott asked.

“Derek called him Peter,” Lydia told them. “And he called Derek nephew. Laura…” She gulped. “Laura killed him.”

Laura lifted her head. “He was our uncle,” she admitted. “We thought he was dead. That he’d died when everyone else did.” She shook her head. “If we’d known…”

Derek tightened his grip on his older sister. “We would have taken care of him, sis. We wouldn’t have left him alone. Pack doesn’t do that.”

Lydia prodded the two of them with her foot. “Can we do something about this? Get up off the floor and get away from the dead body? Is he actually dead?”

Laura got to her feet, sniffing at her packmates as she got close to them. “If he’s not, we’ll make sure he is.” She turned to Derek. “Deaton?”

Derek nodded once. “Deaton.” As the alpha got to his feet, he asked, “Allison, you got a knife on you?” The hunter handed it over and Derek reached down, severing what was left of Peter’s spinal column. “Isaac, call Deaton. Let him know we’ll need wolfsbane. And a friendly coroner. And let him know it was self-defense.”

“We need to call Boyd,” Erica said. “And Stiles.”

Laura’s head popped up from where she was staring at Peter’s body. “What’s a Stiles?”

“Not a what, a who,” Cora piped up. “The new tech Derek adopted.”

The alpha raised an eyebrow at that. “Adopting strays, my Shadow?” she asked.

“It’s not like that, Laur,” he insisted.

“It’s _exactly_ like that, Laur,” Cora responded.

“Shut up, Cora,” Derek replied.

“Um, Deaton said he’ll be here in just a few minutes,” Isaac broke in.

“Good,” Derek said. He gripped his twin’s arm, drawing her from the room. “Are you okay? Do you need? Did Peter hurt you?”

“Mostly he just screamed at me. Told me how the alpha power should have been his,” Laura replied.

Derek frowned. “If that’s what he believed. And we both know that’s not how it should have been. Why didn’t he just kill you? It’s the one way to get the power without it being passed on.”

“He seemed to think he needed both of us, needed to kill us together for it to work,” Laura said. “I think that’s the only thing that kept me alive.”

Without a word, Derek wrapped his arms around her; enclosing his slighter sister in his embrace. Laura might be the elder, but he had always been the protector and it had galled him these long months that he hadn’t been able to protect her. Now he held her as she shuddered through her emotions.

“Derek? Laura?” Scott poked his head into the room they had taken shelter in (which Derek was glad to note now that he was aware wasn’t the same one Laura had been held captive in). “Deaton’s here.”

“We’ll be right out, Scott,” Derek told him. “Just give us a minute.”

“All right.” Scott nodded before backing out of the room.

Laura raised her head, resting it on Derek’s shoulder instead of his chest. “He’s starting to act more like a second.”

“They’ve all grown while you were… gone,” Derek admitted.

“So. Stiles?” Laura asked.

“I’m not talking about it,” Derek replied.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Deaton directed Allison and Lydia in wrapping Peter’s body with the wolfsbane rope he’d brought before allowing the coroner to zip the remains into a body bag. As soon as they were done, the pack took their leave; heading back to the house at a pace the non-wolves of the pack could easily match.

Stiles shot to his feet as the entire pack shuffled into the house. “Oh my god. You guys are okay!” he exclaimed. “Boyd said he heard Lydia. And then. Geez ya know just a little more informa…” He stopped as he caught sight of Laura. “You found her.”

“This is a Stiles, I gather,” Laura said, with a slight smile.

The tech in question flailed as he stepped back, trying to stay away as the alpha advanced on him. “Hey, hey, what?!” he yelped as he tripped over his own feet.

Before he even came close to hitting the floor, Laura grabbed him, spinning him around and holding him against her. “Easy, pup,” she whispered. “I’m not going to hurt you. The others made you pack and I have no objections.” She looked at her brother. “ _Derek_ made you pack.”

“I don’t…” Stiles started.

Laura rubbed her cheek against his, smiling as he wiggled in response, not sure if he should try to get away. “Do you think my brother made a bad choice?”

“Did he even make a choice?” Stiles asked. “I was pretty sure I was just helping him find you.”

“Oh, Stiles,” she said. “If you were just helping my brother, he wouldn’t have brought you to our home and our pack wouldn’t have scent marked you. Trust me, you’re pack.”

Stiles met Derek’s eyes. “I’m pack? I belong with you?”

Derek didn’t have a chance to respond before Leigh was running to them, wrapping her arms around one of Laura’s legs and one of Stiles’s. The rest of the pack barreled into the three of them, knocking them to the ground. Leigh squealed as someone tipped her around so she wasn’t squashed on the bottom.

Each of the pack made sure to get a hand on Laura and Stiles, rubbing up against them to make sure they were marked. Finally the whole group flopped down, all within touching distance. After a minute Lydia groaned, “I don’t object to puppy piles on principal, but can we move this? The floor is killing my back.”

Stiles blinked at the size of the bed in the room the whole group ended up in. “That bed is _orgy_ sized,” he commented, blushing as he realized what he’d said.

There were snorts from a couple of the wolves and then Isaac pushed past him, kicking off his shoes before he climbed into the bed. “Pack bed,” Lydia explained as she sat on the edge of it to unlace her boots. Boyd and Erica followed suit, the latter lifting their daughter up to crawl among the pillows as the other pack members began to filter into the room.

“It’s not for… well. It’s not for that,” Laura said. “It’s for the pack when we need to reconnect with each other and be together.”

“As Lydia called it puppy piles,” Scott commented. “It’s just a whole lot more comfortable here than a group of mattresses or the floor.”

“I didn’t even know you could buy a mattress this big,” Stiles said as he was pushed into the middle of the bed.

Laura plopped down next to him, well aware that most of the pack would need to touch her after being separated so long. “You can’t. We had it specially made. Thank god for werewolf strength to get it up here.”

Leigh crawled up on top of them, patting at Laura’s face before nosing at Stiles. Laura wrapped her arms around the baby, nuzzling at her face. The other wolves settled in around them, resting hands or legs against their formerly missing alpha and their newest pack member.

Derek somehow ended up next to Stiles, looking over the tech at his twin and co-alpha. “I came for you,” he told her.

“I knew you would,” Laura responded. “I always knew you would.”

 

_In case you were wondering, we did pick who was who in this little world and this is the official list:_  
Hotch—Alan Deaton  
Garcia—Stiles Stilinski/Laura Hale  
Rossi—Scott McCall  
JJ—Erica Reyes  
Reid—Lydia Martin  
Morgan—Derek Hale  
Blake—Allison Argent  
Will—Vernon Boyd  
Kevin—Isaac Lahey  
Emily—Cora Hale  
  



End file.
